The first two periods have been summarized by [[Tom Shippey]] as the "Age of Innocence": the time before the publishing of ''[[The Silmarillion]]'', ''[[Unfinished Tales]]'', ''[[The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien]]'' and ''[[The History of Middle-earth]]''. After the publishing of at least some of those, many musings, theories and guesses were flattened by additional information.<ref name="CompFore">[[Tom Shippey]], "Foreword" published in ''[[A Tolkien Compass]]'' (third edition) (edited by [[Jared Lobdell]]), pages vii-xi</ref> The field of literary critics taking interest was still thin, and serious academic research was rare. The first conference on Tolkien's literature was held in [[1966]]; before that, only collected works on children's literature had picked up serious attention for ''The Hobbit'' and ''The Lord of the Rings''.<ref name="ScholFirst">[[Richard C. West]], "Tolkien Scholarship: First Decades: 1954-1980", published in ''[[J.R.R. Tolkien Encyclopedia]]'' (edited by [[Michael Drout]]), pages 654-656</ref>

+

The first two periods have been summarized by [[Tom Shippey]] as the "Age of Innocence": the time before the publishing of ''[[The Silmarillion]]'', ''[[Unfinished Tales]]'', ''[[The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien]]'' and ''[[The History of Middle-earth]]''. After the publishing of at least some of those, many musings, theories and guesses were flattened by additional information.<ref name="CompFore">[[Tom Shippey]], "Foreword" published in ''[[A Tolkien Compass]]'' (third edition) (edited by [[Jared Lobdell]]), pages vii-xi</ref> The field of literary critics taking interest was still thin, and serious academic research was rare. The first conference on Tolkien's literature was held in [[1966]]; before that, only collected works on children's literature had picked up serious attention for ''The Hobbit'' and ''The Lord of the Rings''.<ref name="ScholFirst">[[Richard C. West]], "Tolkien Scholarship: First Decades: 1954-1980", published in ''[[J.R.R. Tolkien Encyclopedia]]'' (edited by [[Michael D.C. Drout]]), pages 654-656</ref>

===1,800 New Entries===

===1,800 New Entries===

Line 40:

Line 40:

==Courses==

==Courses==

{{expansion}}

{{expansion}}

−

There are a number of universities and colleges that offer course work in Tolkien stuides. This is a listing of some of the courses devoted sololy to Tolkien studies. There are some institutions that offer Tolkien studies as part of another course.

+

There are a number of universities and colleges that offer course work in Tolkien studies. This is a listing of some of the courses devoted solely to Tolkien studies. There are some institutions that offer Tolkien studies as part of another course.

* [[wikipedia:Bethel University|Bethel University]] offers a course on the theology of [[Middle-earth]].

* [[wikipedia:Bethel University|Bethel University]] offers a course on the theology of [[Middle-earth]].

His lecture titled Beowulf: The Monsters and the Critics changed scholars understanding of the epic poem. During his time it was largely viewed as a historical document, but Tolkien argued that it should be examined as a literay work of art. This method of studying Beowulf is now popular today.[3]

Age of Innocence

Generally, the history of Tolkien scholarship is divided into four time periods:

the book reviews

the cult period and the fierce reactions to it

the acceptance of Tolkien as a literary agent

and lastly, the post-movie phase, featuring expanded volumes, reprints, and a wide variety of subjects.[4]

The first two periods have been summarized by Tom Shippey as the "Age of Innocence": the time before the publishing of The Silmarillion, Unfinished Tales, The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien and The History of Middle-earth. After the publishing of at least some of those, many musings, theories and guesses were flattened by additional information.[5] The field of literary critics taking interest was still thin, and serious academic research was rare. The first conference on Tolkien's literature was held in 1966; before that, only collected works on children's literature had picked up serious attention for The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings.[6]

Fields

Linguistics

Invented languages

Philology

Literature

Christianity

Philosophy

Courses

"...It is a long tale..." — Aragorn
This article or section needs expansion and/or modification. Please help the wiki by expanding it.

There are a number of universities and colleges that offer course work in Tolkien studies. This is a listing of some of the courses devoted solely to Tolkien studies. There are some institutions that offer Tolkien studies as part of another course.